Bicycle
by shamazing
Summary: Too caught up in trying to forget, Noriko is reminded by a flourescent sparkly pink bike that today is all that we ever really have.
1. Noriko

**A/N: ****The words in italics are Noriko's memories, which are actually references to my short stories in "Cups of Tea." The stories are referenced in this order: "Spectator," "Push," and "Peg," in case you cared. Also, "Strawberry Cake" is an addition to "Cups" that I just uploaded.**

**

* * *

**

_She says_

"_Wake up_

_It's no use pretending."_

_--Naked As We Came, Iron and Wine_

.

_Too busy writing your own tragedy_

_You bubble wrap _

_You've no idea what you're like_

_Let go, jump in_

_There's beauty in the break down_

_--Let Go, Frou Frou_

* * *

Having already pressed the snooze button on her alarm clock three times, Noriko Nijou crawled to the other end of her lofted bed, lowered the upper half of her body off of the edge of the bed, and reached for the alarm clock that was beeping incredulously from the shelf that hung above her desk. The blaring noise died and the room was dead silent again. She just let herself hang there, motionless, like she did every morning, contemplating whether or not it was worth it to get out of bed to go to lecture when she only had four hours of sleep.

It was during this time in the morning that she was most vulnerable to her memories—to all that she ran away from. By day she was fine. The new life she had in America kept her distracted. It was only when she was not busy with homework or her other activities did Noriko's unresolved issues come out.

Her eyes wandered to the black box she kept under her desk. In it were several hundred paper cranes (made of newspapers that she read every day), a rosary, juzu beads, and a picture frame. It was all in her past now.

-

'_I've always wondered what it felt like to be a star.'_

-

It was all in the past.

-

'_To just sit there and watch all by yourself.'_

_-_

Time to wake up now.

-

'_It must be lonely.'_

_-_

"You know," Noriko almost fell head first to the floor at the sound of the voice, "I've never heard of blood rushing to the brain as a cause of death."

"KATE!" Noriko screamed after she regained her balance and sat up on the bed, "You have to stop doing that! One of these days, I might actually fall off and die."

Kate Brandt started laughing from her desk, which was opposite of Noriko's. This was their daily ritual—Kate always let Noriko's alarms go off so that the girl would eventually wake up on her own. Her noise cancellation headphones made all of this possible and she always remained quiet until she noticed that Noriko was hanging over the edge of her bed.

She stood up, unceremoniously opened the blinds, and let the sun flood the box they called their dorm.

"Me?" the other girl asked Noriko with her thick Chicagoan accent, "What in the devil did I do to you? You're the one who decides to risk her life everyday by hanging her entire upper body upside down just to turn her alarm off."

"Hrnn," was all that Noriko grunted as she grabbed her toothbrush and toothpaste and walked past her roommate out the door.

"Good morning to you too, sunshine."

* * *

With fifteen minutes left until the beginning of her fundamentals in biomolecular engineering lecture and a twenty minute walk from her dorm to the Chemistry Annex, Noriko decided that her bike would be her best bet. The dreary winter weather had been particularly gracious this week, allowing students to use their bikes to get to and from places faster. In the five thousand acre campus, owning a bike basically meant the difference between life and death (and tardiness) to the students.

Noriko ran down the stairs and turned the corner to the bike racks. Reaching her parking spot, she stopped at her tracks.

There, on the third bike rack from the end, was a fluorescent, sparkly pink bike, and it had a bike lock that was locked not only around the bike rack but also around Noriko's crappy eighty dollar bike.

She was screwed.

There was no way to release her own bike from the clutches of the other bike's U-lock and the bus just whizzed by.

She was also pissed, but with her grade point average in mind, Noriko ran.

* * *

"I cannot believe people sometimes. How can some people be so self absorbed and so inconsiderate and just plain stupid?" Noriko ranted as she set her dinner down on the table.

"What's with the self-righteous, self-satisfied indignation?" chided Kate as she stuffed her face with broccoli. Noriko narrowed her eyes. Kate laughed nervously. She reached for her slice of cake and held it out to the fuming girl beside her.

"Cake?"

Her question momentarily halted Noriko, who stared at the strawberry cake. But it was only for a split second.

She ignored Kate and jumped back to her rant.

"Someone decided to lock their bike on mine at the bike racks this morning."

"Maybe they were just in a hurry and they failed to notice," Kate tried to pacify her with some suggestions, "The person will probably remove it by tomorrow."

"They better," Noriko replied, attacking her food with a fork.

* * *

But Kate's optimism (and Noriko's wrath) did not succeed at vanquishing the cursed bike. The bike, in all its glorious pinkness and sparkly-ness, defiantly remained locked to Noriko's bike.

A week had passed and the owner of the bike did not move her (or perhaps his? Kate said they shouldn't judge) bike and unlock Noriko's bike.

By this point, Noriko was being driven insane. She had missed the beginning of lecture twice now, and she was not about to take this from some self-absorbed punk who obviously could care less about other people.

Another week passed. Still no sign of pink bike lady (or man, reminded Kate).

Noriko was at her wit's end. It had snowed recently, and all but two bikes were taken inside to safety. Her bike, along with the pink bike, was going to rot there for all eternity.

"Really," she fumed as she dug through her book bag, "How dare this person. Who does she—"

"Or he." Noriko ignored her.

"Who does she think she is?"

"How about," Kate said as she put her bowl of cereal down, "You go check the bike identification number on the bike and report it to the university's transportation division? All student bikes have to be registered, you know."

Noriko was quiet for a second.

"You're right. I'll do that first thing tomorrow."

Both girls quieted down and Noriko started her homework while Kate munched on behind her.

"Hey, Noriko?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you staying here for winter break again?"

Noriko stopped writing. _Winter break._ She had forgotten about the month break they got from school. It was going to be Christmas again. Time for presents, and trees, and lights, and ice skating, and…

-

'_I think I will just watch you from the sidelines.'_

'_Ha. What would be the point of me kidnapping you to go on this wonderful ice skating adventure for your birthday?'_

_-_

"Yeah," Noriko said absent mindedly. She blinked before turning to face Kate.

"Well," Kate said with a merry tone, "You should come home with me! I know going back to Japan may seem like a hassle, so why not come spend the holidays with me and my family? I promise they're not as crazy as me."

Noriko laughed.

"No one can be crazier than you, Kate."

"Hey!"

She was also relieved to have Kate, who was her first friend in America. They were randomly placed together in the dorms their freshman year. They became friends, and they remained roommates for their sophomore year and, now, their junior year. Although Noriko never explicitly told her, Kate knew that there was something in Japan that Noriko was running away from. Something was keeping Noriko, who had not gone back to her country since she started her freshman year of college. She wanted to tell her to confront it, but she knew it was not her place to say that.

"Thank you Kate, I think I would like that."

* * *

Noriko marched up to the frivolous bike. She brushed off the snow and inspected it carefully. It was glazed with an almost fluorescent pink, with stickers of American bands—The Fray, Green Day, Muse—on the main frame. There was a white basket attached to the front, with a soaked pamphlet about Alternative Spring Break volunteer opportunities glued to the bottom, and right next to it was a ringer. The seat was adjusted to the lowest level—this person was most likely short—and what Noriko saw next made her falter.

The bike had pegs. It had damn pegs.

-

'_We're biking?'_

'_It's okay. I know you don't know how to ride a bike.'_

_-_

Swallowing hard, Noriko shook away the memory and looked for the registration number. She found it under the seat without much difficulty and wrote down the numbers before trotting off to the transportation office.

* * *

When a patrol car showed up by the bike racks, Noriko was a little surprised. Was America that intense about cycling rules?

She could care less. Finally, the selfish person would get what she (or he, Kate reminded her) deserved.

Noriko stood there as they used a chain saw to cut the U-bike lock into two pieces. Her bike was free! Noriko almost hugged the mass of cheap metal that got her through three solitary years in America, but she noticed that the policeman was taking the sparkly pink bike with him.

"Wait…what are you doing?"

The policeman told her that the owner—the selfish bike owner, the self-absorbed and inconsiderate pink bike lady—was dead.

"It was unexpected. The young lady's family is too busy dealing with everything right now."

And as the policeman drove away with the sparkly fluorescent pink bike in tow, Noriko stood amid the bike racks, frozen to the ground.

* * *

The next morning, Noriko crawled to the other end of her lofted bed, lowered the upper half of her body off of the edge of the bed, and reached for the alarm clock that was beeping incredulously from the shelf that hung above her desk. The blaring noise died and the room was dead silent again. She just let herself hang there, motionless.

All her feelings of resentment and hatred towards the pink bike lady melted away as she stood by the bike racks while the patrol car drove away. She was so ashamed of her stupid self-righteousness. She was so quick to judge.

Thinking back, she remembered what she saw when she inspected the bike. Pamphlets to a university sponsored volunteer trip that the girl was probably thinking of joining, stickers of bands she listened to on her iPod while she rode her bike, and a bell she used to warn people as she turned the corner. It was a normal life. It was an interrupted life.

Noriko was curious about the girl. Why did she lock her bike against someone else's? Maybe Kate was right. Maybe, caught up in not wanting to be late to class or having to go back to her room so quickly, the girl absent mindedly locked her bike against Noriko's, with the intent of coming back and unlocking the bike again. She locked her bike thinking that her day would continue, that the rest of her life would continue.

It was so hard to digest for Noriko—how she could be alive one day and disappear the next.

It was the most basic truth: Life is fragile. Life ends abruptly, with no flashing lights or signals.

Noriko knew she would cherish this basic truth for a while. She would keep in mind that every day is a gift, that every day is the beginning of the rest of her life. But now, with the flashy pink bike gone, the lesson it held about the fragility of life would also slowly fade. Noriko would return to her busy, scheduled life—all in vain to forget what she was too cowardly to fix.

Staring intently at the black box under her desk, Noriko made up her mind.

"Seriously," Noriko almost fell head first to the floor at the sound of the voice, "Blood rushing to head? Falling? Any of that making sense?"

"KATE!"

Kate laughed a little before opening the blinds.

"Hey, Kate?"

"Hmm?"

"Thanks for the offer," Noriko trailed off. Kate's face told her that she knew what she was talking about, "but I won't be able to go with you after all."

Kate smiled, grateful that her friend was finally facing her demons, whatever they were.

"In that case," she said as she dug into her closet, "here is your Christmas present…Now, where's mine?"

Noriko burst out laughing from her bed.

* * *

Shimako Toudou quietly hummed to herself as she carried her groceries and trudged along the snow. Snow was dancing about her as they descended upon earth and Shimako hoped that she would not have a lot to shovel when she got home. She was already a little upset that the bakery sold their last strawberry cake of the day, but there was nothing she could do about that.

Her steps slowed, like they always did, when she passed by one of the Tokyo's many outdoor ice skating rinks. She gripped the plastic bag handles tighter and trudged along.

Turning the corner to her apartment, Shimako stopped at her tracks.

Standing in front of her door with a cake box in her hand was Noriko, who was looking intently at the doorbell. She turned her head at the sound of Shimako's footsteps. After a brief moment of hesitation, like it was the most natural thing to do after not seeing the other woman for almost four years, her mouth formed a warm smile.

"Cake?"

* * *

**A/N: Today, I spent three hours in a stadium watching my university's football team duke it out with our rival university. The band was loud, the crowds were louder, and I heard joking threats exchanged between the orange and the blue crowds. They were all so happy. At that moment, it was the game that mattered. It was all that mattered.**

-

Halfway around the world, 300 of my countrymen were dead. Two thousand people lost their lives in neighboring countries, and the devastation is still raging on. Rich or poor. It was all the same. They were all the same. We are all the same.

I was in my dorm when I read the headline earlier this week.

-

A self proclaimed wayward Catholic, I have always had qualms about my faith.

But at that one moment, that sunny afternoon,

I went on my knees  
clamped my hands together  
shut my eyes  
and for the first time in my life

I truly prayed  
because I felt like it was all that I could do. It was all I could do.

-

-

**This story is theirs, because like that girl who locked her bike on Noriko's, they too woke up and went about their lives, thinking that come nightfall, they would be back in their beds and waiting for tomorrow. **


	2. Kate

**A/N: **I lied. HAHAHA. This just kept nagging at me, so I just wrote it. This story overlaps with the first chapter, although told from the point of view of Noriko's roommate, Kate. Kate Brandt and the Brandt family are my little characters. They're cute :) Many instances in this story are from the first chapter, but I just thought it would be interesting to view Noriko from the outside. I may write one last chapter from Shimako's point of view, I dunno. We'll see.

Okay, enjoy kids!

_

* * *

_

I wish you would step back from that ledge my friend

_You could cut ties from all the lies _

_that you've been living in_

_--Jumper, Third Eye Blind_

_A tired song keeps playing _

_On the tired radio_

_You could hide beside me_

_Maybe for a while_

_And I won't tell no one your name_

_--Name, Goo Goo Dolls_

_

* * *

_

"Kate! I wanna see!"

"Andrew, shut up."

"MOOMMMMMMM, Kate told me to shut up."

Kate glared at her twelve year old brother as her mom chastised her from the kitchen downstairs.

"Ooh. I wanna see too!"

"Oh my gosh," Kate turned to her younger sister, who was two years younger than her, "not you too, Spencer."

Kate's younger siblings continued to pester her—Andrew, being the unusually tall twelve year old that he was, locked his oldest sister in a bear hug while signaling Spencer the go sign. The younger girl hurriedly scrolled through the pictures.

Kate sighed in defeat. When did these two, who used to hate each other, start ganging up to make fun of their beloved older sister? She shook her head and smiled at nothing in particular. She knew this was their way of coping with the fact that their Kate was going to be gone soon—off to college, and, soon, the real world. They knew that despite Kate being home for breaks and summer vacation, she was never going to come back and live there anymore. It was the end of this phase of their life, no matter how they looked at it. That was why Kate let the two scoundrels tickle her and embarrass her and harangue her. This was a celebration of an end and of a beginning.

"What exactly is going on here?"

The three Brandt children turned to the door in unison, where they saw their mom and dad looking at them with confused looks.

"Oh," Andrew started, "we were just showing Kate how much we love her."

"And we're also stalking her roommate."

Kate saw the light bulbs go off in her parents' eyes. It was over. Before she knew it, the two of them were hovering over Kate's laptop, as childish as their two children.

"Is that her? She looks like such a sweet and nice girl."

"She's an international student isn't she? Why don't you bring her home for Thanksgiving?"

Kate would have smacked her head if she could, but her arms were still slowly losing blood from Andrew's death grip.

"Okay, OKAY," Kate started, glaring at her brother to make him let go. He laughed nervously and let go. Despite being a head taller than his oldest sister, there was no denying that Andrew was still scared of his sisters.

"Stop harassing me. I'll show you the pictures and the whole enchilada."

Kate looked around at her family as they crowded around her and almost laughed at the ridiculousness of the whole situation. Shaking her head, she pulled up the pictures her assigned roommate, Noriko Nijou, sent her in their daily emails.

* * *

Kate Brandt applied for housing late. She also applied for financial aid late.

It wasn't that she was a procrastinator (well, she is).

She was accepted to an Ivy League school, and till the last minute she and her family fought for it with all that she had. In the end, they simply couldn't afford it. With Spencer going to college in two years, and with Andrew still up, there was no way.

That was one of the first few times that Kate realized how unfair life was. The perfect bubble that she lived in burst before her eyes in a split second. It made her sad to know that life was more than who she was.

She hated the school she had to go to now. Hated it. And when she found out that because she applied to housing late she might be placed in temporary housing, she hated it even more.

But then, one sunny June morning, she opened her email account and found an email from a certain Noriko Nijou—her assigned roommate.

That started their daily ritual. Kate would check her email in the morning and reply to Noriko's email, who in turn would reply during the night, when it was morning in Japan. Their emails were pretty interesting, and filled with very thoughtful and intelligent conversation. They talked about everything: religion, life, their majors, ice cream and food, their different cultures and lifestyles, their schools, families and friends, their plans for the future—everything. Kate had been obsessed with Japan ever since her trip to Ritsmeikan High School in Japan for the International Student Science Fair. How lucky was she to be assigned to an international Japanese student?

And Noriko was actually a really cool person, at least from her emails. She was undoubtedly intelligent, but she was also funny on the side. Kate was expecting a demure girl, but Noriko was incredibly open-minded and she spoke her mind. She seemed to have a borderline obsession with Buddhism, which was great, since Kate was looking into learning about different religions when school started.

Before Kate knew it, she started looking forward to going to this school. She actually found herself dragging her mother around to go dorm shopping.

She bought Noriko a snow globe of the city of Chicago and Chicago Bears jersey, and Noriko promised to bring her something authentically Japanese, not like the souvenir-y things Kate got when she went to Japan.

Tilting the snow globe upside down, Kate watched the fake snow descend on the city, hoping that Noriko would like her present.

* * *

Noriko was a hit with Kate's family. She had the slightest Japanese accent, but her English was perfect otherwise. She said her school emphasized learning the English language well. She bowed a little when Kate and her family walked into the dorm on move in day, and later she told Kate that it was hard to shake the habit off. Kate's mother was overcome at the sight of the bowing Noriko and she almost hugged the girl, were it not for Kate yanking her away and giving her the eye.

Noriko had arrived a day earlier, and when Kate arrived, she couldn't help but kick the door open to scream "NORIKO-CHAN!!!" as she said she would in her emails. Noriko laughed out loud and called out to Kate. Noriko helped Kate and her family move all of her stuff that they crammed in the family van (the tank, as Andrew dubbed it). They had laughs as Noriko and Kate switched off telling each other funny stories.

When they were all settled in, Kate's family dragged Noriko, despite her insistence, out to lunch with them. They went to the local Wal-Mart and bought more supplies. Kate's dad saw Noriko looking at the bikes, which Kate knew was a big mistake. Her dad was an intense biker, and she knew he would not leave Noriko alone now that she showed the slightest bit of interest in biking. Prepared to save Noriko, Kate went up to the two of them. She saw, however, that Noriko was actually listening intently and that in the end, with the help of Kate's dad, she decided to buy a bike to help her get around the acres and acres of campus.

Before leaving, Kate's mother insisted that she take a picture of the two roommates. Kate could feel a vein popping, but she relented, knowing that her parents were trying their hardest to hold it all in as they let their oldest child, their baby, go.

Holding up peace signs next to the room number on their door, Noriko and Kate took their first picture together.

* * *

"Hey, look!"

"Hmm?"

"It's our first picture together! From our freshman year"

"What? Where did you find it?"

"Inside my lovely 'Kate's box of memories.'"

"Haha. Seriously, Kate? You have a box of memories."

"Yes, as a matter of fact I do. Stop hating. You're just jealous."

"Uh-huh."

"I'm going to frame it!"

"Haha. Okay, then make me a copy."

"Awwwwww. You want a copy? I'm going to commemorate this day on our friendship calendar!"

* * *

Kate laughed after recalling the conversation she had with Noriko earlier that week. It was the beginning of junior year, and it was her third year rooming with Noriko, who had now become one of her good friends.

Closing her book, Kate leaned back on the tree and took the music in. She was listening to her iPod while enjoying the lovely autumn day on the quad. Everyone was rushing to get to class, but Kate had an hour until her next class, so she decided to sit down and enjoy the atmosphere. There was a guy wearing his lab coat and goggles running on the grass to avoid the crowds, a girl on a fluorescent pink bike nearly ran over two chatty girls who weren't paying attention, and group of friends were throwing Frisbees to each other. She loved this university. She couldn't imagine herself anywhere else.

Noriko had a box too. She couldn't fool Kate.

Underneath her desk, Kate knew Noriko kept a black box. She had paper cranes in it (she had a habit of folding the newspapers she and Kate read into paper cranes, it was her idea of recycling) and Kate was also sure that she had a picture in it, and a bunch of rosaries.

Something was up. No, scratch that, something's always been up.

Noriko would sometimes stare outside the window, at nothing in particular. She got particularly quiet every time Kate tried to drag her ice skating, and she had never gone back to Japan. Not even once. She spent most of her time during breaks and vacations researching or travelling abroad and across America or visiting Kate's family.

Noriko also had a habit of turning her alarm off every morning and just letting herself hang halfway off of her lofted bed. It had become a gag reel now, a habit between the two friends. Kate would say something clever about head injuries to Noriko, who still got scared after three years of living with Kate. She was in such deep thought every single time, as if she had the world on her shoulders, and Kate could only imagine what Noriko was thinking about.

Once, when they were cleaning, Noriko knocked her box over and the contents spilled out. Always the slow one, Kate didn't notice until a picture flew to her feet. Looking down, she picked up the picture and saw Noriko with another girl. They were both wearing dark colored school uniforms and they were both smiling like nothing else mattered in the world. Noriko had longer hair in the picture, and the other girl had wavy brown hair. Kate only had a few seconds to ponder about who the girl was and why she had brown hair when she was Asian (Kate can be random at times) before Noriko called her name.

"Kate?"

"Huh?"

"The picture?"

"…Oh. Oh yeah, here, sorry."

"Thank you."

"So…who is she? I don't think you've mentioned her before."

Kate didn't mean to pry, but she had to do something. Noriko was losing whatever internal battle she was waging, and Kate felt instinctively that this may be a step towards the right direction.

"Oh, uhm, she was a friend. But that's all in the past now."

Kate merely nodded, and deciding to change the topic she perked up.

"Gee, look at you rocking those bangs. I never would have thought that you had your hair Lady GaGa style."

"Hahaha. Wow. I have never heard that one before."

Something had always been up, and Kate couldn't help but be sad that she couldn't do anything about it.

* * *

"I cannot believe people sometimes. How can some people be so self absorbed and so inconsiderate and just plain stupid?"

"What's with the self-righteous, self-satisfied indignation?"

Noriko's eyes narrowed. Whoops. Kate quickly grabbed her slice of strawberry cake to pacify her friend.

"Cake?"

Her question momentarily halted Noriko, who stared at the strawberry cake. Kate forgot that Noriko was strangely anti strawberry cake. No clue why. She put the cake down and waited for Noriko to finish.

"Someone decided to lock their bike on mine at the bike racks this morning."

"Maybe they were just in a hurry and they failed to notice. The person will probably remove it by tomorrow."

"They better."

* * *

Kate knew that Noriko was not going to go home for Christmas break. She never did. Freshman year, she studied abroad for a month in Italy, and sophomore year she stayed in campus to do some research. Kate was going to change all that this year. She couldn't just stand by anymore.

"Are you staying here for winter break again?"

Noriko had saved her before—she had saved Kate from hating the world and life for snatching away what Kate then thought was her future, her Ivy League ticket to the world. She helped Kate realize that she had to make the most of what she had, which was a lot in comparison to the many unfortunate people in other parts of the world, and just keep moving forward with it. Kate realized that everything happened for a reason and that in the end, it was all going to work out. Kate owed it to Noriko.

"Yeah."

"Well, you should come home with me! I know going back to Japan may seem like a hassle, so why not come spend the holidays with me and my family? I promise they're not as crazy as me."

"No one can be crazier than you, Kate."

"Hey!"

"Thank you Kate, I think I would like that."

"Perfect!"

Hiding her right hand behind her back, Kate had her fingers crossed the entire time.

* * *

Kate was walking back to the dorms after her four hour lab class when she saw Noriko standing by the bike racks, staring at nothing in particular. She absent mindedly replied to Kate's "Hey, what's up?" before turning around to go back inside. Following suit, Kate waited for her friend to talk about what just happened.

Apparently, the bike owner was a girl (what? Just because it was pink didn't automatically make the owner a girl). A dead girl, to be exact.

It was daunting, to say the least. It kind of freaked Kate out, but she knew that Noriko was going through something else. Her Japanese friend was moved by what just happened—about the fleeting and fading sense of life.

And when Noriko turned and told Kate that she wouldn't be joining her family this Christmas season, Kate knew that Noriko won. Kate knew that Noriko won the internal battle, and that for the first time in three years, she was going home to face what she was running from.

Perhaps it was the lesson about life's fragility that woke Noriko up. Whatever it was, Kate was glad. This was a fresh beginning for Noriko, who had a bright future ahead of her, and she could not be happier for her friend.

Tearing up a little, Kate hurriedly made her way to her closet to hide that she was wiping her eyes. She pulled out a metallic silver envelope with a gold bow on it. There was a small piece of paper attached to it—one of the tea bag papers that Kate collected. The papers on the end of the tea bag strings in their dorm had quotes on them. This one read:

"_Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit"_

_--Henry David Thoreau_

There was also a card with Kate's miniscule hand writing scrawled all over it.

_Noriko,_

_I lied. You're not welcome at my house this year. You're being mean :P_

_Take these instead._

_Merry Christmas!_

_Wishing you all the happiness in the world,_

_Kate :)_

"In that case here is your Christmas present…Now, where's mine?"

"Hahaha."

Kate was never planning on taking Noriko home with her for Christmas. Unbeknownst to Noriko, Kate had bought her round trip first class tickets to Tokyo for Christmas.

* * *

Lugging her clothes back to her room, Kate dodged all the students returning to the dorms after winter break. She was dead set against using the elevator—she firmly believed that the only reason she did not gain the freshman fifteen was because she always took the stairs to her floor.

Opening the door, Kate found Noriko unpacking.

"Hello, sunshine."

"Hello, you creep."

Laughing, Kate put her bag down and hugged Noriko. Noriko went back to unpacking and Kate hauled her duffel bag over to her closet. She babbled about the amazing stock of Japanese food that Noriko brought back with her from the motherland, jokingly referring to Japan.

"Hey, Kate?"

"Hmm?" Kate said without turning round.

"Thank you."

Looking over her shoulder, Kate saw that Noriko still had her back to her while she unpacked. Kate also saw that the old picture that Noriko kept in her box was now framed, sitting on Noriko's desk right next to the framed picture of Noriko and Kate that Kate's mother took when they met for the first time. The girl with wavy brown hair smiled softly at Kate, and so did teenage Noriko, her eyes seemingly brighter than before.

"No, thank you."


	3. Yasujiro and the Young Lady from Tokyo

**A/N: **This is the last addition for this story, I SWEAR. Haha. I keep saying that, but then I always end up writing more.

I'm not so sure about this one. I hope it gets the point across. I wrote most of it from an outsider's point of view, a character I made up. Hopefully, you all enjoy it.

This was somewhat inspired by Yasujiro Ozu's and Hiroshi Shimizu's classic Japanese movies (that I watch when I have 'shamazing' days and just laze around my room). I suggest you go and check them out.

Italics are excerpts from short stories in Cups ("Strawberry Cake" and "Push").

* * *

_So glide away in soapy heels_

_and promise not to promise anymore_

_and if you come around again_

_then I will take the Chain from off the door_

_-- "The Chain," Ingrid Michaelson_

_-_

_-_

_And so it goes, this soldier knows_

_the battle with the heart isn't easily won_

_._

_But it can be won_

_-- "Soldier," Ingrid Michaelson_

_

* * *

_

"Excuse me?"

Yasujiro and his friends turned around at the sound of another person's voice.

"Sorry, yes?"

"A guest at the Dragonfly Inn requested for a masseur."

"Oh, thank you Tomoko-san," Yasujiro replied, flashing a smile and bowing towards the direction of the receptionist's voice.

"Whose turn is it?"

Yasujiro turned to the source of another voice.

"Hiroshi," Yasujiro started, "I think it's my turn."

"Ah, yes, I think so too," Hirsohi said with relief—he was too tired to walk to the Dragonfly Inn, which was the farthest inn from where they were currently staying.

Yasujiro slowly got up. Putting his white coat on, he took his walking stick and bade his fellow blind masseurs a good day before venturing out into the streets of the tiny secluded onsen village.

* * *

"Good morning!" Yasujiro greeted cheerfully as he walked into the Inn.

"Ah, good morning, Yasujiro-san," the inn keeper's voice replied with the same small town charm, "There is a young lady upstairs in room 3 waiting for you."

"I will be going then," the masseur replied, bowing and thanking the inn keeper before feeling his way towards the stairs.

* * *

"Excuse me, miss," Yasujiro politely called out from the other side of the sliding door. He heard the sound of soft footsteps and the sound of the door sliding.

The first thing Yasujiro noticed was the smell. It was the smell of Tokyo. Yasujiro and his friends prided themselves in their keen sense of smell. The smell of Tokyo wasn't bad at all; it was just different from the smell of the onsen village. There was a sense of industrialization and detachment that came with the smell.

He could also smell a hint of Sakura that came with the air of grace and antiquity that approached him.

"Hello," a kind and soft voice greeted him, "Please, come in."

* * *

"What an interesting life you lead," the young lady's rather breathy voice sweetly filled the room as Yasujiro finished recounting his story. He couldn't help but blush.

"Aha," he said with much enthusiasm, "Miss, I would dare say you have a more interesting life. You are from Tokyo, are you not?"

"Yes," she replied with a curious tone, "how can you tell?"

Yasuhiro smiled inwardly. He did not want to offend the young lady or make her feel uncomfortable by telling her that she smelled like the metropolitan, but he also wanted to show off his ability to smell distinct aromas.

"You smell of Tokyo," he said simply, hoping that the young lady will not be offended and ask him to leave. 'And of Sakura,' he wanted to add as an afterthought, but decided against it.

Instead of a retort, he heard a different sound. It was sweet, soft and melodious and he wanted to hear it again after it stopped. It was her laugh.

"Tokyo? I was not aware that I smelled like the city."

Yasujiro let out a breath of relief and laughed a little as well.

"It is a little complicated," Yasujiro started, "I have a weird sense of smell."

"Do tell."

Yasujiro became grateful that he volunteered to go to the Dragonfly Inn despite the fact that it was Hiroshi's turn. He nodded and started to share his story animatedly to the young lady. She listened attentively and thoughtfully remarked on certain things. Her laugh was intoxicating, but Yasujiro could not help but feel a sense of emptiness, of something, laced in with her laughter.

* * *

"Excuse me," the receptionist called out again.

"Yes?" Yasujiro was quick to respond, already up on his feet.

"Someone at the Dragonfly Inn called for a masseur."

"Alright, thank you," Yasujiro nodded quickly, feeling for his white coat and his walking stick.

"Oi," Hiroshi's voice came from his side, "You went last time."

"Oh yes," Yasujiro momentarily halted, "I suppose so."

An awkward silence—which was the worst when the world around you was already pitch black—enveloped the room.

"Hiroshi-kun," Yasujiro started in a patronizing tone, "Can I go again, please?"

"Fine, fine," Hiroshi replied.

Yasujiro hurriedly thanked him before leaving in a hurry.

"What's gotten into him?" asked one of the other masseurs.

"I have no idea."

* * *

The young lady was entertained with Yasujiro's stories about his adventures as a blind masseur. Her soft laugh was occasionally heard, and Yasujiro realized how wise and philosophical the young lady was despite her age. He also realized that he knew nothing of the young lady. He had been doing all the talking.

"Tell me about Tokyo, miss," Yasujiro started, "I have never been to the city."

"Ah," the young lady started, "the city is alive. It continues to proliferate. You can drive down one street and the city will never end. The city is bright, and it is impossible to find stars."

"Is that so?"

"But there are still tokens of Japan scattered throughout. There are beautiful Sakura trees and Gingko trees lining many long pathways. There are some outdoor ice skating rinks,"

She faltered for a second.

"…That come to life at night, when the bright lights and the fog come down and almost engulf you…There are places where you can still find that sense of peace and 'being at home,' as they would say. There are…"

She continued to falter, as if every word was adding weight onto her shoulder.

"There are plenty of shrines tucked away in the city. Especially Buddhist shrines."

It was quiet. Too quiet.

"Ah," Yasujiro started, thinking of something to say before they fell into a deep lull of silence, "You are Buddhist then?"

He felt the young lady smile at his comment.

"No," she said with a certain air of thoughtfulness, "I'm afraid I'm not. I just knew someone who was particularly fond of them."

"I see."

"Please do not get offended, but I am merely curious," the young lady suddenly changed the topic, "How do you feel about not being able to see the world?"

"Seeing is relative," Yasujiro said thoughtfully, "I do see the world. I see it through sounds and smells and scattered touches. I feel the world enough to paint my own picture of it. In many ways, I feel as if I can see clearer than if I had eyes. Sometimes, I feel like the illusions of what you can see only cloud what is truly there."

The young lady was quiet.

"I have never had the chance to see the world, being blind from birth. But it would be different for you, miss."

He felt the younger lady tense up a little.

"You have seen the world. You have seen colors and faces and life. The thought of losing your eyesight now would be indescribable, is it not? It is an integral part of you. You would be incomplete without it."

Yasujiro suddenly smelled the ocean, but the sound of the waves gushing about him was absent. He pondered about what it was for a quick second before realizing that it was not the ocean he could smell. It was the smell of salt. Of tears.

"Miss?" He panicked, "Forgive me, did I say anything to offend you? Please do not cry. Merely dismiss my musings."

"I am sorry to worry you," she said quietly. He could feel her smile in her voice.

"You see," she started after another moment. Yasujiro paid close attention. "I've lost something of great importance to me."

Yasujiro nodded.

"You will find it again," he told her confidently. He truly wished, from the very bottom of his heart, that she would.

"I hope so," she said, more to herself than him, "I hope she will come back to me."

* * *

She left the next day. Yasujiro bought her a little souvenir, insistent that she take it. After much persuasion, the young lady relented and thanked him. She politely thanked him for his services and his stories. She wished him good health and peace, and he nodded and wished her the same.

Without having to see it, Yasujiro watched one Toudo Shimako board the bus that will take her to the train, which will take her back to Tokyo—to her home, to her life, and hopefully, to whatever it was that she lost.

* * *

_4 years later_

Shimako had a long day. She was glad to be able to go home finally, and to lift her spirits, she decided to make herself a good home cooked meal.

She went out to buy more Christmas presents before going out to get her groceries. Passing by the pastry shop, she stopped and contemplated about getting a cake.

-

"_Ne, let's bake a cake."_

"_Cake?"_

_-_

"Sorry miss," the lady at the counter replied apologetically, "someone had just come in and bought the last strawberry cake."

"Oh, how unfortunate," Shimako mused. She thanked the lady and kept on walking home. Snow started to descend from the sky and Shimako looked up to watch the specks come towards her, her hair blowing in the wind. She passed by one of Tokyo's many outdoor ice skating rinks. Of all the routes she could take home, she continued to take this route.

She looked at the children precariously walking by the edge of the rink, clinging on to their mothers for support.

-

'_I think I will just watch you from the sidelines.'_

'_Ha. What would be the point of me kidnapping you to go on this wonderful ice skating adventure for your birthday?'_

_-_

She smiled softly and kept walking, with the lights and the merry sounds of the rink behind her. Someone had once told her that not being able to see something was beneficial sometimes. That only then would she really be able to see. The rink was still there—she could hear it, she could feel it, feel the happiness and peace exuding from it.

-

-

She walked slowly, basking in the mirth that was the rink.

-

-

It was her turn to wait. She had waited patiently for Shimako before. Now, it was her turn.

-

-

Shimako turned the corner to her apartment, absentmindedly following her feet and contemplating about the world, not noticing that another pair of hesitant but determined footsteps already led to her door.


End file.
